Gloomy: 2006 Mercury Music Prize shortlist Announced

The 2006 Mercury Music Prize shortlist has been announced, and the twelve albums chosen by the esteemed judges, ain’t exactly a bunch of happy choons.

Announced by dear old Jools Holland in London yesterday, the finalists were whittled down from more than 250 entries and the lucky beggars going head-to head include Thom Yorke, the Editors, Richard Hawley, Muse, Arctic Monkeys and newcomers the Guillemots.

Despite most of them being a tad on the miserable side, the biggest ‘shock’ is the lack of women on the shortlist.The popular Lily Allen and Corinne Bailey Rae have been snubbed in favour of the lesser-known Lou Rhodes, Zoe Rahman and Isobel Campbell (and Mark Lanegan).

Those cheeky Arctic Monkeys are favourites to bag the prize on September 5 for their album, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not. But the talented Sway or likeable Hot Chip could also pull it out of the bag.

“It’s true some of the albums are gloomy. But there has been gloom in British pop from Morrissey onwards. And they are gloomy but uplifting,” judging panel chairman Simon Frith tells the Sun.

“It was an interesting year. There seemed to be much less dance music. And there were no big British albums which have done well abroad - like Oasis or Coldplay last year. There seemed to be a big rise in singer songwriters - lots of boys with guitars.”

Considering Antony and the Johnsons beat Coldplay and the Kaiser Chiefs last year, expect someone you’ve never heard of to walk away with the gong.

Source: http://megastar.co.uk